New alliance calls for “Smart Growth” investment in cities, not more 1980s-style sprawl

A new alliance of civic, environmental and transport bodies including the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), the Campaign for Better Transport, and Civic Voice, today calls for a radically new ‘Smart Growth’ [1] approach which they want adopted for any new large scale developments. They are backed by respected figures from all three main political parties, including Tory grandee and former Environment Secretary Lord Deben (John Gummer).

The alliance believes that the low-density, car orientated suburban schemes of the 1970s or 1980s, like Milton Keynes or Bradley Stoke in Bristol, are not the way forward. Instead, for example, new development should blend the well-designed family terraced housing with gardens of a typical British Edwardian suburb [2], with cutting edge practice from across the world, such as recently developed ‘eco-suburbs’ in Freiburg (Germany) and Stockholm. These developments:

provide energy-efficient housing at high residential densities;

reuse brownfield land as much as possible;

are easily linked to town and city centres by public transport; and

are designed so that walking or cycling are the norm for everyday travel.

The call comes as the Government prepares to publish a long-awaited prospectus for major new development. According to a little-noticed recent report [3], developers are formulating proposals for a new generation of ‘garden cities’ in south east England, involving up to 250,000 homes on greenfield land, with 170,000 of these to be located either along the M11 and A14 corridors, or between Oxford and Cambridge. Such an approach threatens to take us in precisely the opposite direction to smart growth, increasing congestion on those roads and forcing people to rely on cars.

Conservative peer and former Environment Secretary Lord Deben said: ‘Land, that precious scarce resource, will be at a further premium as the world struggles with rising food prices and scarcity. Let's concentrate on recycling already-used land. There are more than sufficient sites for the housing we need. It only requires imagination, energy, and Government drive to unlock them. Building on green fields is the lazy way to sacrifice our future.’

Labour MP for Stoke on Trent and historian Dr Tristram Hunt said: ‘Britain has so far been spared from US-style, countryside-gobbling, urban creep, but plans to build new cities along the M11 are a recipe for suburban sprawl. Ministers need to focus on keeping our cities alive, and preserve our countryside through smart growth. Good quality, high density housing schemes on brownfield sites should be the priority.’

Liberal Democrat MP for Cheltenham Martin Horwood said: ‘'The Smart Growth principles offer an alternative to constant overdevelopment of areas already under pressure. Developers will always chase low density, greenfield development regardless of the environmental and social consequences because that is what makes them the most profit. But we need an alternative vision which promotes the recovery of derelict land and buildings, urban regeneration, genuinely sustainable communities and the protection of treasured and important green spaces.’

CPRE Chief Executive Shaun Spiers said: ‘We need many more new homes, but it is equally critical not to repeat past mistakes. We want new developments that are beautiful in their own right, take up as little of our precious countryside as possible, and save residents from reliance on cars. If the Government is intent on developing new towns, they must demonstrate how they can be sustainable. A good start would be to commit to applying smart growth principles in their construction.’

Chris Brown, regeneration expert, concluded: ‘The best towns and cities constantly renew themselves organically for the benefit of their citizens and it’s common sense to make best use of our existing infrastructure. This is what Smart Growth delivers.’

End

Notes to Editors

[1] Smart Growth is a holistic approach to land, transport and community planning. Smart Growth aims to prevent urban sprawl; make best use of brownfield land in towns and cities; provide and encourage sustainable transport; protect countryside and heritage and create sound communities. It was first articulated in North America as a response to the way urban areas had developed there.

The alliance of organisations believes these principles can be adapted and used to achieve similar benefits here. In England alone there is sufficient brownfield land available and suitable for residential development for 1,494,070 new dwellings. This is equivalent to around 6 years’ supply at the building rates the government claims we need and 10 year supply at 2009 building rates. (2009 figures from the National Land Use Database quoted by CPRE, Building on a Small Island, November 2011). Many sites are stalled or part-built due to lack of finance, and the alliance urges the Government to prioritise building on these before sacrificing countryside for new settlements.

The following brownfield sites are amongst those already receiving funding under the initiative:

Western Riverside, Bath (more than 2,000 new homes)

Heron’s Reach, Oldham, Greater Manchester (41 new homes)

Carlisle Park, Rotherham, South Yorkshire (up to 400 new homes)

For more details see Meeting the Growth Challenge – the Smart Growth Approach, the series of principles agreed by the alliance, available from http://www.cpre.org.uk/resources/housing-and-planning/planning/item/download/2872The signatories to the statement include the following companies and organisations: All Party Parliamentary Light Rail Group; Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland; Association of Small Historic Towns and Villages of the United Kingdom; Campaign for Better Transport; Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales; Campaign to Protect Rural England; Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management; Civic Trust for Wales; Civic Voice; Igloo Regeneration Fund; Light Rail UK; North of England Civic Trust; Scottish Civic Trust; Ulster Society for Protection of the Countryside.

[3] The GVA report, Unlocking Garden Cities (February 2013), is available from www.gva.co.uk/research/. See pages 4 and 5 for more details of proposed new settlements along the M11 and A14 corridors.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) fights for a better future for the English countryside. We work locally and nationally to protect, shape and enhance a beautiful, thriving countryside for everyone to value and enjoy. Our members are united in their love for England’s landscapes and rural communities, and stand up for the countryside, so it can continue to sustain, enchant and inspire future generations. Founded in 1926, President: Sir Andrew Motion, Patron: Her Majesty The Queen. www.cpre.org.uk

http://www.bettertransport.org.uk/">Campaign for Better Transport is the UK's leading authority on sustainable transport. We champion transport solutions that improve people's lives and reduce environmental damage. Our campaigns push innovative, practical policies at local and national levels. Campaign for Better Transport Charitable Trust is a registered charity (1101929).

Civic Voice is the national charity for the civic movement. We lead and support civic societies as a national movement for quality of place, with people actively improving their towns, cities and villages and promote civic pride. We speak up for civic societies and local communities across England. We believe everyone should live somewhere they can be proud of. Further information is available at http://www.civicvoice.org.uk including contact details for local civic societies.